Need help, non e30 electrical problem

[Stanley Rockefeller]

OK, So I got this POS 03 Focus that left us stranded last night. My GF and I were drivin back from Banff, when the cars guages all died and the car started drivin all funny like bucking and shit.
So we got the car off the road and parked it at the nearby petro canada station in Canmore. I popped the hood and looked at the wiring leading to the alt and it was pretty secure (as I had replaced the alt last spring). I also looked into the ign wires, and they looked fine.
I finally looked at the battery and took it's cover off. When I did this, I noticed a HUGE acid deposit around the positive terminal, as well as the green "eye" that indicates that the battery was good, had turned a bright reddish/orange. I tried to wash the stuff off the top of the battery as well as top up the cells in the battery with some tap water from the gas station, but this still didnt' get the car started..it just clicked the starter motor.

I know it's not the alt, as I just replaced this last spring. Shoudl i jsut return with a new battery and take it from there? I'm thinking that the battery shoudl be replaced at this point...at least to get the car back home.

I'll return with a new batt today as well as the alt meter to test the charging system.

From the symptoms listed above...do you guys think it's the alt or the battery? or both???

any help is appreciated

[SeriousBusiness]

Either one will possibly cause those initial problems. Older vehicles would run indefinitely with no battery power (straight from alternator) but I have found some newer vehicles will not behave properly with a bad battery, just depends on the make I guess.

Generally once the battery stops receiving a constant charge the vehicle will run for a short amount of time before completely running out of juice (many times ruining an older battery in the process). The battery is obviously dead if it won't start the vehicle and just clicks (the starter is getting power, just not enough). Try to jump the car off and start it that way. If the alternator doesn't keep the car running once the cables are off then you know it is not charging the battery. The alternator will more than likely be the problem here.

I am assuming you purchased a remanufactured unit last year? I'm not sure of the parts houses you guys have in Canada so I can't speak of their warranties, but I am pretty sure if you took it back to the place you bought it from they can test it and swap it out for you as a warranty return.

[kway]

Battery's probably it. Original? If so, just think it's 7 years old now. Make sure to clean the corrosion from that positive cable really well. You can neutralize the acid beforehand with a water/baking soda mix (make a runny paste with it) or coca-cola will work in a pinch.

You can get that aerosol battery terminal protection spray to maybe prevent it from happening again. I usually hate that shit, kind of sticky/messy, but sounds like it might be put to good use here.

[Stanley Rockefeller]

Either one will possibly cause those initial problems. Older vehicles would run indefinitely with no battery power (straight from alternator) but I have found some newer vehicles will not behave properly with a bad battery, just depends on the make I guess.

I think this is the exact problem here. I recall last week when I was getting my e30 out of long-term storage. The battery is at least 7 years old as well (what a coincidence) and the started just clicked vaguely while tryign to start the car. I tried to boost it with an old 75 3/4 ton Ford that was in the quancet, but there wasn't enough juice to get it going. After I removed the battery I tried to start the e30 and it fired up with no probelms whatsoever. the car ran just as well as if it had a good battery in it. After charging the battery for a short while it started under its' own power and ran just fine.

thanks again for the help

[Stanley Rockefeller]

Well, this past Monday I bought a new battery and took it out to the car. After testing with a multimeter the old battery, it was still showing a full 12-13 volts, it just hardly had the ability to start the car. SO I tried the new battery in it and it started and got itself all the way home with no issues whatsoever!

Just as SB mentioned, the electrical components on the car needed a battery to actually function correctly.

thanks again for the help guys!